The Sculptor

NOTE: Mr. Dixon is the official sculptor for our committee

Eddie literally exploded on the art world with his first commission--a sculpture of the only Black Fighter Pilot during World War I, Eugene Bullard, for the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Although, Eddie's strict attention to authentic detail of his subjects has led to important commissions, he humbly acknowledges his talent to be God-given. This divine gift was evident in his first series of sculptures, which consisted of mercenaries and warriors during the pre-Christian era. In 1992, Eddie was commissioned to create the 17-foot Buffalo Soldier Monument located at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

In 1992, President George H. W. Bush declared July 25th "National Buffalo Soldier Day" in honor of Dixon's Buffalo Soldier Monument. In further recognition, a United States postage stamp was later designed and issued in the likeness of the Buffalo Soldier Monument. October 16, 1993, "Eddie Dixon Day" was declared in Washington D.C. and New York City and on March 28, 1994 in Lubbock, Texas for outstanding accomplishments in art. That year, Felix De Weldon, sculptor of the Iwo Jima Monument, passed on the coveted Baton to Dixon.

For his art, Eddie has received the following awards: NAACP George Woods award, "The Arts," for Outstanding Services in Art; the Command Medal from General Franks and General Colin Powell; Gold Medal of Ethnic Art; National Military Artist of the Year (1994) awarded by the National Association of Military Museums; National Artist of the Year (1994) awarded by the National Association of Entrepreneurs Best of Show in a national competition sponsored by the Institute of Texan Cultures; Best of Show in an International Show sponsored by the Ethnic Art Society; Best of Show from the Texas Fine Arts Competition; Best of Show in the Rockwell International Show; First place in the Sculpture Division from Southwest Fine Arts Exhibition; and many more.

Eddie and his art have been featured on the Arts and Entertainment Channel, The Discovery Channel, Texas Country Reporter, Good Morning America, CNN, CBS News, USA Today, the Washington Post, New York Times, Dallas Morning News, Emerge, and on the cover of International Business and Jet Magazines--just to name a few. In the Fall of 2003, Eddie’s art contributions to the Buffalo Soldiers were added to middle school history textbooks such as Celebrating Texas and African American First and many other history textbooks were made available for classroom use throughout the U.S. In October 2005, Eddie was presented with the Department of the Army Headquarters USA Combined Armed Forces Command Special Troop medallion in the image of the Buffalo Soldier Monument. In addition to those previously mentioned, Eddie has received many honors, awards, and recognitions from corporate, educational, community, and clergy-based organizations.

Today, Eddie's art can be found in national historical sites, the Pentagon, West Point, US Department of Interiors, US State Department; the Smithsonian Air and Space, the Smithsonian National History museums, and in many museums and war memorial and National parks throughout the United States and in more than 50 countries abroad. His works are in the private collections of Colin Powell, Morgan Freeman, Danny Glover, the late Alex Haley and Bill Leckey and others. His work is also in the corporate collections of such giants as RJR Nabisco, Upjohn, Readers' Digest, Coca Cola USA, and the Annenberg and Zachery Fisher foundations.

In 2008, Eddie was commissioned to create the 15-foot sculpture (placed in the War Memorial park) of Willie McCool, the pilot astronaut that died on the Space Shuttle Columbus and in 2012, Fort Leavenworth Historical Society commission him to create a sculpture of General Colin Powell. In 2015, Glasheen Legal Firm commissioned Eddie to create a monument of Timothy Cole, an African American veteran wrongly convicted of rape who became the only Texan posthumously pardoned and in 2017, the Waco Committee, commissioned him to create a sculpture of Doris Miller, an African American World War II hero honored for his bravery during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Most recently, the Tricentennial Sculpture Trail commissioned Eddie to create the Yellow Rose of Texas and West Point commissioned him to create a 1906 West Point Military Calvary Soldier monument.